Now that is a catchy tag line.
In my line of work, I am constantly meeting all kids of people. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to talk with a fellow VA, who by the way will be celebrating her 23rd year as a virtual service provider at the end of this month (see, this industry isnt as new as some think).
That is the tag line Marian uses to describe her niche'. Marian has found a way to provide a service to her clients, all while she is talking to them on the phone, or in some cases, in person. What is that service? Resume' writting - and she is considered an expert at doing it.
Here is what transpired in our conversation:
How long have you worked in a VA capacity? Nearly 23 years (I opened the business on June 25, 1985)
What has changed in our industry over the 23 years you have been involved? Technology has played a huge impact. In the 80’s, most of my work had to be done “in-person” and therefore local, where as now I have had clients literally located all over the world.
How has Resume’ Writing changed over the years? Again, the technology has changed and the actual layouts of the resume of themselves. Once upon a time you would have submitted your resume’ and would have been competing with your neighbors, now you are competing on a global market because of such sites as Monster.com and Workopolis.com.
How has working virtual impacted your life? I find that I have more freedom, as I am home based. I can transition from work to personal life very easily because of this.
What is your specialty? “Making my clients shine on paper” by ensuring that their word processing and correspondence are letter-perfect and grammatically correct
What is/are your best quality/ies?
- I am dependable and provide stellar customer service; e.g., my business placed 2nd (out of 500) in a professional membership customer service survey.
- I provide super-fast turnaround without sacrificing my commitment to producing top-notch work; e.g., when I was a Public Relations Secretary at the beginning of my career, I performed all of my assigned duties - with time to spare. When I was promoted, 2 full-time secretaries and 1 part-time admin. assistant had to cope with a reduced workload - and still had trouble meeting deadlines.
- I can solve problems and brainstorm effective win/win solutions; e.g., in 1997, I co-introduced a 24-hour cancellation policy because I experienced 275 insufficient-notice cancellations in 1996. As a result, my cancellations in 1997 dropped by 97% to only 7 for the entire year.
Best advice to new VAs just starting out?
- Form sincere and genuine alliances with other VA's so that you have someone to turn to when facing a VA-specific concern. The right way to do it: Ask if you can help them with their workload. The wrong way to do it: Tell them that you want to steal their customers away. (Note: One VA-wannabe actually admitted this to me!)
- Join a VA association and sign up with their e-list. I've learned some priceless tid-bits from both the Canadian Virtual Assistants Network (CVAN) and the Canadian Virtual Assistants Connection (CVAC).
- Participate in teleclasses. In addition to the appealing and highly-relevant topics offered in teleclasses, bask in the energy and motivation that is sure to envelop you and keep you jazzed for a long time to come.
Best advice to business owners thinking about working with a VA for the first time? Conduct a Google search, access the Virtual Assistant member web-sites, and acquaint yourself with the myriad of talents that each VA can offer.
Hobbies/Interests? 50's / 60's / 70's (et. al) music (I am an admitted Top 40 geek and could easily be the next Rick Dees!), cooking, bargain hunting, eBaying, finance conservation, personal and professional development
Volunteer/Charities? I’ve volunteered with Girl Guides of Canada (similar to Girl Scouts) since the Fall of 1996:
… 1996 – 2000: Brownie Leader (girls in Grades 2 and 3)
… 2000 – 2004: Spark (equivalent to “Daisy”) Leader (girls in Senior Kindergarten and Grade 1)
… 2003 – present: Cookie Sales Coordinator
Is there anything else you would like to tell us about yourself? Along the way, I developed a passion for writing resumes, preparing clients to ace the interview, and wishing success for my job-seeking clients. As a result of becoming the Province of Ontario’s first Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and 1 of only 8 Certified Employment Interview Professionals (CEIP) in Canada, I take pride in the fact that (i) samples of my work are published in 3 resume-writing primers and (ii) I sport a 97% success rate in terms of my clients landing interviews. Ultimately, I LOVE what I do for a living!
To contact Marian -
The Regency Group (d.b.a. Regency Secretarial) - a subsidiary of 6429432 Canada Inc.
Aurora, Ontario, Canada ... Aurora is 30 minutes north of Toronto
905-841-7120 / FAX 905-841-1391 / www.resumeexpert.ca
* Ontario's first Certified Professional Resume Writer
* 1 of only 8 Certified Employment Interview Professionals in Canada
* Proudly affiliated with:
... PARW/CC, CMI, and CPC (resume associations)
... CVAN and CVAC (virtual assistant associations)
... Aurora-Business.com, the Aurora Chamber of Commerce, and Girl Guides of Canada
* Contributor to the following resume books:
... *Expert Resumes for Managers and Executives*
... *Gallery of Best Resumes for People Without a Four-Year Degree*
... *Best Canadian Resumes*
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